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Musical form has flourished unabated in Hong Kong

Eric Szeto (left) with opera master Jenny Chin (right) in the role of Marshal Chuo Yu. On Saturday, June 14, an entire tasting menu of opera hits from the Cantonese repertoire will be presented at the Vancouver Playhouse.

That Asia, and China in particular, has taken to western classical music in a big way is one of the most important cultural changes of our era. Turnabout is not just fair play, but an immensely interesting opportunity to sample the long, rich histories of Eastern classical traditions which in many instances predate by centuries analogous genres in the West.

This season features a series of local showcases for one of the most extravagant of Asian music theatre genres — the Cantonese opera.

On Saturday, June 14, an entire tasting menu of opera hits from the Cantonese repertoire will be presented at the Vancouver Playhouse.

Eric Szeto is founder and president of the Vancouver Seniors’ Cultural Club Association, the organization behind three opera showcases on the books this year at the Vancouver Playhouse.

“When I was a child, back in Hong Kong, I always listened to Cantonese opera,” recalls Szeto. “But I never had any chance to participate. After I retired, I volunteered for a fraternal association in Chinatown, and I was asked to MC an event which included opera. A lady I met there agreed to teach me to sing it, and that is how I finally became involved personally.”

Historians tell us (though, historians being historians, there is some disagreement) that the proto-types of Chinese music theatre developed centuries ago. According to Szeto, “All Chinese opera originated from one place (Anhui Province). Then it moved north, until the musicians and singers were playing in court for the Emperor, in Mandarin.” Political change scattered practitioners, who established music theatre companies where they could.

“Cantonese opera slowly developed its own style. In Canton, it was originally sung in Mandarin, the official language. Then after opera began to be sung in the Canton dialect, it became enormously popular.”

During the Cultural Revolution, opera was suppressed in mainland China, but it flourished without interruption in Hong Kong.

“The roots were kept alive,” observes Szeto. Today that tradition continues. “Opera is very absorbent, typically taking the best of what was good and changing it, using the old instrumentation but then adding Western instruments, like the cello and saxophone, alongside the traditional ones, and enriching the whole musical vocabulary.”

Vancouver may be a young city but it has its own Chinese opera tradition. Though definitive studies of how the Cantonese opera came to Vancouver have yet to be written, we do know that touring companies were presented from very early on in our history as a metropolis. Today’s city boasts active performing societies and many aficionados. Just like in other forms of opera, it’s an extravagant undertaking, demanding opulent costumes, breathtaking sets, singer-actors and large instrumental ensembles.

Szeto notes: “Twenty or 30 years ago, Cantonese opera was cheap and easily accessible; now, like everything else, it is much more expensive. To organize a full production is very costly. Some of our performers actually subsidize the production; in return they get blocks of admission tickets, so they can invite friends and colleagues to the shows.”

A major concern for European-style opera is the perceived greying of the audience. Great emphasis is placed on initiatives aimed at attracting younger audiences and ensuring that coming generations grow to understand and love the genre. Is it same for Cantonese opera?

“There is certainly a generation gap: the broad base of our audience is those over 50,” says Szeto. “We too are always trying out ways to attract young people.” An essential part of the current strategy is the use of projected texts. “We have both Chinese and English surtitles (translated or transcribed lyrics/dialogue projected above a stage or displayed on a screen.) And for our November 9 production, we are inviting students to attend the show free of charge.”

I wondered about the survival of “Cantonese” opera at a time of growing emphasis on Mandarin. Szeto isn’t particularly worried.

“Cantonese is still the main language for Hong Kong. People are writing new songs and new operas. There is quite a good resurgence of talent and interest.”

For the June showcase, the idea is to present a series of excerpts, not a single complete show (which, not unlike Western opera, can easily run to three hours or more). “This means that the audience gets a chance to sample a lot of different types of opera experience,” explains Szeto. “Tragedy, comedy, love affairs, military scenes.”

I don’t consider myself anything like a highly developed connoisseur of Cantonese opera, but as an opera fan in general, I have considerable enthusiasm for what I recognize as something much more familiar than one might expect, including larger-than-life emotions and a complex interplay of text and music. Real connoisseurship takes a lifetime, but enjoyment can be almost instant when a host of wonderful musical and theatrical conventions play out. Opera is, after all, opera.

Eric Szeto (left) with opera master Jenny Chin (right) in the role of Marshal Chuo Yu. On Saturday, June 14, an entire tasting menu of opera hits from the Cantonese repertoire will be presented at the Vancouver Playhouse.

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